German Paralympic long jump champ won't bid for Olympic team

Published 2:23 am, Saturday, July 2, 2016

MONACO (AP) — Paralympic long jump champion Markus Rehm will not be seeking selection for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, after all.

Rehm, a right leg amputee, was aiming to become the second athlete with a carbon-fiber prosthesis to compete at the Olympics and Paralympics after now-disgraced South African runner Oscar Pistorius in 2012.

The IAAF announced his decision after Rehm met on Friday with IAAF General Secretary Jean Gracia and agreed to join a working group on the use of prostheses in competition, with the aim of changing rules to allow athletes with prostheses to compete in future world championships.

To become eligible for the Olympics, Rehm had to prove that his prosthesis gives him no advantage over other athletes. A study he commissioned on the issue was inconclusive.